1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a backlight unit and a liquid crystal display (LCD) including the same and, more particularly, to a backlight unit having improved luminance and uniformity and a liquid crystal display (LCD) including the backlight unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display (LCD) has advantages, such as slimness, lightness, and low power consumption, such that it replaces the existing cathode ray tube (CRT). As a result, the liquid crystal display (LCD) has been prevalently used for midsize and large products such as a monitor, a TV and small-sized products, such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and portable multimedia players (PMPs).
Generally, the liquid crystal display (LCD) includes a liquid crystal display panel using the optical properties of a liquid crystal and drives the liquid crystal display panel, thereby displaying image data. However, a liquid crystal used for the liquid crystal display panel does not perform self emission, such that it requires a separate light source.
Therefore, a rear surface of the liquid crystal display panel is provided with a backlight unit, including a light source and a light guide panel for receiving light emitted from the light source and for diffusing the light, such that light is irradiated to the liquid crystal display panel through the backlight unit, thereby implementing identifiable images. As the light source included in the backlight unit, the light emitting diode (LED) may be used. The LED may be used by being disposed on one side surface of the light guide panel.
As such, as light is incident on the light guide panel from the light source and the incident light is irradiated to the liquid crystal display panel, the luminance around a light receiving portion of the light guide panel adjacent to the light source may be relatively high, while a dark portion may be generated in a portion at which the light emitted from the light source does not arrive. Owing to the difference in luminance, the uniformity of an image through the liquid crystal display panel is deteriorated, such that the display quality of the liquid crystal display (LCD) may be deteriorated.
In addition, light may be leaked while the light emitted from light source is inputted through the light receiving portion of the light guide panel. Owing to the leakage of light, the entire luminance of the image may be deteriorated.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for an enhancement of an understanding of the background of the described technology, and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art which is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.